Beckton Desalination Plant

The construction of the first desalination plant in London was driven by the growth of the population as well as by the scarcity of natural resources in the area. The plant received the Global Water Intelligence Magazine Award for Most Sustainable Project in 2009, and the Best Desalination Plant in 2011.

Given the tidal and seasonal variability of the raw water in terms of salinity, temperature, and concentrations of suspended solids and organics, numerous pre-treatment technologies were tested over a period of 18 months to ensure that the water treated in the reverse osmosis membranes was of a quality that would guarantee the reliability of the entire process under these conditions of variable water quality, at a reasonable cost.